Cult Cardiff pop up Matsudai Ramen has teamed up with Bristol’s Tomo No Ramen to launch a pop up ramen shop at 55 West Street, which will open on 6th November.
Taking over the former West Street Kitchen site, Matsudai & Tomo No Ramen will be serving simmering bowls of delicious noodles from 5:30 - 10pm, Wednesday - Saturday.
With a core menu initially built around Iekei-inspired (pronounced E-A-K) Yokohama-style Tonkotsu ramen, the plan is to run a weekly changing menu of specials, sides and more.
Tomo No Ramen will also be serving up their signature Tomo-ya Dirty Shoyu Ramen; a golden chicken bone soup, with signature dirty shoyu tare, aromatic chicken oil and marinaded back fat, house tokyo-style noodles, smoked coppa chashu, diced shallots, ajitama, spinach, and nori.
Tables for the Matsudai x Tomo No Ramen Bristol pop up are now available to book here.
The new collaboration is the result of the founders - James Chant (of Matsudai Ramen) and James Stuart (of Tomo No Ramen) - bonding over their mutual love of proper ramen. Both have previously appeared as guests on the cult podcast ‘Way of Ramen’ to talk about the growing ramen scene here in the UK.
Matsudai was first launched in 2019. Disillusioned with a career in the music industry and itching to express his creativity through a new outlet, Chant embarked on a series of pop-up events and kitchen takeovers in his home city of Cardiff, keen to see if his hobby for making ramen could ever become something more.
These events gathered fervent feedback and culminated in a packed-out six-week residency at a local night café. Then, COVID-19 happened – yet Matsudai continued to make friends through lockdown by delivering thousands of freshly prepared DIY ramen kits to fans all over the UK.
Since then, Chant has taken Matsudai Ramen on a UK tour (visiting Manchester, London, Bristol and a pop up in his home city of Cardiff), grown his team to seven staff, and is about to embark on a multi-week kitchen takeover at the BFI Stephen Street in Soho, London.
Meanwhile, James Stuart of Tomo No Ramen first began experimenting with cooking ramen at home almost a decade ago. Seeing gaps in what was available in the UK, he set out on an adventure to cook his own. In the crucible of lockdown, James spent months making and eating ramen multiple times per day, using local ingredients and traditional techniques; fuelled by obsessive internet research and exchanges with other ramen obsessives, he began recreating classic styles – and creating new ones.
After multiple sell-out popups at West Street Kitchen and collaborations with great ramen chefs from around the country, James is now ready to take the next step. As a result of the pop up, Stuart has now quit his full-time job to focus his full attention on Tomo No Ramen.
Of the Bristol pop up, James Chant said
"Bristol is a great city, but previous Matsudai pop-ups here have been far too short and sweet, so I’m really excited to be teaming up with Tomo no for a longer stint - especially as autumn is upon us, and ramen weather will become the norm.”
Tomo No Ramen founder James Stuart added,
"Big thanks are due to the outgoing team from West Street Kitchen for giving us this opportunity. This is a big step forward for Tomo No Ramen, and we hope we can bring something new and delicious to the city.”
Tables for the Matsudai x Tomo No Ramen Bristol pop up are now available to book here.